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A SHORT ACCOUNT 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH, 



rnlNTED BY 
L. AND 0. SEELKY, THAMES DITTON, SUnnEY. 



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TEMl-il.E CliiURCli 

view oir the Circula-i^arL , 



;,•///.■//, I'lil^b.'ilwxL hu aniiy.fb'f^ Strf^.Jiqj^J. 






A SHORT ACCOUNT 



OF 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH, 



LONDON. 



BY GEORGE GODWIN, Jun., Architect, 

ASSOCIATE OP THE INSTITUTE OP BRITISH ARCHITECTS. 



THE ILLUSTRATIONS FROM DRAWINGS 

BY ROBERT WILLIAM BILLINGS, 

ASSOCIATE OF IHE INSTIIUTE OF BKITISH ARCHITECTS. 

Engraved by JOHN LE KEUX, 



LONDON. 1837. 



C. TILT, 

J. HATCHARD & SON, L. & G. SEELEY, J. WEALE, 
AND J. WILLIAMS. 






55S=^ 



'o-a. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH, 

LONDON. 



" Hail Calvary, thou mountain iioar, 
Wet with our Redeemer's gore ! 
Ye trampled tombs, ye fanes forlorn. 
Ye stones by tears of pilgrims worn, 
Your vanished honours to restore. 
Fearless we climb this hostile shore ; 
And thou, the Sepulchre of God ! 
By mocking pagans rudely trod. 
For thee from Britain's distant coast 
Lo ! monarchs lead a faithful host.'' 

Thomas Warton. 

It may safely be said that there is no one human institu- 
tion, in the annals of the world, which caused greater 
changes in the habits and manners of society, than did 
that of Chivalry, nor one on which we now look back with 
equal wonder and surprise. To say nothing of the re- 
strictions which it placed on the strong, and the protection 
it rendered to the weak, so important in the absence of 
other laws, the devoted gallantry to the fair sex, and the 
high feeling of honor which its ordinances inculcated and 

H 



2 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

enforced, led to the most singular developements of cha- 
racter, and proved of the greatest advantage, not merely 
to the rude times during which it flourished, but to those 
which succeeded them. As a regretted writer has observed, 
' although we can now only regard it as a beautiful and 
fantastic piece of frost-work which has dissolved in the 
beams of the sun, and seek in vain for the pillars and 
vaults, the cornices and the fretted ornaments of the tran- 
sitory fabric, we cannot but be sensible that its dissolu- 
tion has left on the soil valuable tokens of its former 
existence.' ^ 

We find its dawnings among the numerous tribes who 
occupied the German forests, as described by Tacitus ; ^ 
but the system was not fully matured until after the over- 
throw of the Roman Empire and the foundation of the 
various modern states which arose therefrom. The cere- 
mony of initiation into the order of knighthood after these 
events, became altered in its character. The priesthood, 
anxious to bind in their interest the military ardour of the 
people, and to secure their zealous exertions for the ad- 
vancement of the church, added to the obligations of the 
new-made knight the service of religion, promising glory on 
earth and immortality in Heaven to all persons who should 
distinguish themselves in her cause. A strict and rigorous 
noviciate was enforced from him who aspired to be a 
knight ; the vigils preceding his admittance to the order 
were spent at the altar, and at his initiation he swore to 
be loyal not merely to the king and to the ladies, but to 
God. 3 

Close as was the connection thus established between 

1 Scott's " Essay on Chivalry." 

2 " De Mor. Germ." 

^ Dii Canffe. Mills' " History of the Crusades," &c. Passim. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 3 

military ardour and religious devotion, farther steps were 
taken, and it was rendered still more perfect during the 
struggles made by the Christians for possession of the Holy 
Land, by the institution of the two celebrated military 
orders of monks, known as the Knights Hospitallers of St. 
John of Jerusalem, and the Knights Templars ; the former 
for the purpose of providing for the sick and weary amongst 
the pilgrims who resorted to the Holy City, and the latter, 
in the first instance, to protect them on their journey and 
preserve a free communication between Europe and Jerusa- 
lem. By certain members of this latter fraternity resident 
in England, the beautiful church under our notice, viz. St. 
Mary's, commonly known as the Temple Church, was 
erected, and it may not be out of place therefore, before 
entering upon a description of it, to sketch their history, 
and the progress of the croisades, or Holy Wars. 

From the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus a. d. 34, 
until the conversion of Constantine, at the commencement 
of the fourth century, the Christians suffered most grievous 
persecution ; but under that Emperor, all the troubles of 
the church, excepting those caused by the schisms of her 
ministers, were removed, and she enjoyed for a short 
period peace and prosperity. About the year 326 of our 
era, Helena, the mother of Constantine, made a pilgrimage 
to the scene of the redemption, (a practice, afterwards so 
universal, which we are told, was commenced immediately 
after the ascension of Christ,) and there either built, or 
assisted to build, a church on the site of the Holy Sepulchre. 
After the death of Constantine the light of religion was again 
obscured by the dark clouds of ignorance and superstition, 
and Jerusalem, after many changes, was taken in the year 
636 by the followers of Mahomet, ^ who in their turn were 

• Fuller's " Historie of the Holy Warre." 1647. 
II 2 



4 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

dispossessed for a considerable period by the Turks, but 
again obtained dominion over it at the end of the eleventh 
century. During the whole of this time the situation of 
the Christians there resident was sad in the extreme ; they 
were, in fact, suffered to exist only that they might prove 
a source of revenue, ^ and this state of things being con- 
stantly reported to their countrymen by those pilgrims who 
succeeded in returning from the Holy Sepulchre, a feeling 
of hatred towards the unbelievers — a desire to wrest from 
them possession of a spot made holy in the opinion of 
Christians, by having been the birth-place and cradle of 
their religion, was universally excited. This desire mani- 
fested itself in an expedition for the purpose as early as 
the tenth century ; which proved impotent ; but a. d. 1093. 
Peter the Hermit, carried away probably by a heated ima- 
gination, although as Fuller says, " some suspect him to 
be little better than a counterfeit, and a cloke-father for a 
plot of the Pope's begetting," ^ travelled over Europe, 
setting forth the degraded state of the Christians in Jeru- 
salem, and exhorted the people to vengeance with so much 
success, that hundreds of thousands of persons assumed 
the cross and took the road to the Holy City. All things 
gave place to this one object of desire : the claims of the 
world were entirely disregarded, and so expiatory was it 
deemed, that sinners when they assumed the cross were 
instantly regarded as saints. The appellation, however, was 
not justified by their conduct ; intolerance and cruelty seem 
to have usurped in their breasts all other feelings, and the 
record of their journey presents but a continued series of 
perfidy and bloodshed. They were cut off by thousands ; 

^ " Two pieces of gold was the annual price of the safety of every indi- 
vidual infidel in Jerusalem." Mills' " History of the Crusades.'^ 
2 Ut supra. B. i. c. 8. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 5 

but, horde succeeding to horde, in July a. d. 1099, Jeru- 
salem was taken possession of by the Christians, and 
Godfrey of Bouillon was appointed King. People of all 
ranks and all ages now wended their way as pilgrims 
to the sepulchre, but reached it with the greatest difficulty, 
and after the most severe distresses, caused by the various 
wandering bands both of Saracens and Turks who infested 
the roads. It was for the purpose of preventing, as far as 
possible, the recurrence of these difficulties, by affording 
protection to the pilgrims, that the order of the Knights 
Templars was instituted, about the year 1117, by two cru- 
saders, named Hugh de Paganis or Payens, and Godfrey de 
St. Omer, or Audomare, who were at first joined by only 
seven persons. They originally called themselves Milites 
Christi, and then Pauperes Commilitiones Christi et Templi 
SolomoniSy^ and bound themselves to obedience to the 
order ; chastity ; and community of possessions. They 
came first into England about the commencement of the 
reign of King Stephen, and established themselves near 
Oldbourne, London, on the site of the present Southampton 
Buildings, where about one hundred years ago, when taking 
down some old houses, remains of their original temple 
were discovered, which, it appeared, was of a circular form 
like a part of the present church, and built of Caen stone. ^ 
During the reign of King Henry II. however, they removed 
to a spot of ground which they had purchased, between 
Fleet Street and the Thames, now known as the Temple, 
and which was then termed, in distinction from that which 
they had left, the new Temple. 

The Knights of this order were at first very poor, so 
much so indeed, that one horse served two of them, as is 

^ Dugdale's " Monasticon Anfflicanum" 
2 Britton's " Architectural Antiquities of Great Britain." Vol. I. 



6 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

represented on their seal which remains to us ; but, acquir- 
ing extraordinary reputation from their valorous conduct 
against the infidels, they became of great importance, 
" waxed suddenly insolent, disdained other orders, and 
sorted only with noblemen." ^ Their revenues from the 
bounty of their patrons, augumented to a surprising degree ; 
and they progressively established preceptories or com- 
manderies ^ in Germany, France, England, Poland, Sicily, 
Cyprus, and other parts of Europe, whence after their 
numbers were reduced in Jerusalem, (and this, from the 
prominent part they played, was often the case,) they 
obtained reinforcements of Knights. It appears that they 
first assumed the title of Templars, or Knights of the Tem- 
ple, about A. D. 1118, when Baldwin I. bestowed upon 
them a residence adjacent to the Temple at Jerusalem. 
According to Dugdale,-"^ they wore linen coifs and close 
red caps ; their armour was of twisted mail, and over this 
was placed a white habit, on the front of which (above the 
left breast) was embroidered a red cross.* 

During the whole of the Crusades the Templars were 
every where engaged in the thickest of the fight, and per- 
formed prodigies of valour ; but, notwithstanding the 
devotion thus exhibited, it appears to be generally admitted 
that much injury was done by them to the Christian cause 
in consequence of the violent hatred which existed between 



' Matthew Paris. 
2 Scott says in a note (Ivanhoe V. ii. Edit. 1830.) the establishments of 
the Templars were called Preceptories and those of the Knights of St. John, 
Commanderies ; but by most writers on the subject these terms are used 
indiscriminately. 

3 " Mojiasticon." p. 814. 
^ " And on his brest a bloodie crosse he bore, 
The dcarc remembrance of his dying Lord." 

Spencers " Fairy Queen'* B. I. Can. 1. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 7 

them and the Knights Hospitallers, and led to constant 
collision. In 1259, indeed, a general engagement took 
place between them, when Mills relates {ut sup. Vol. ii. 
p. 252.) that the Hospitallers proved victorious and that 
scarcely a Templar escaped alive. ^ Fuller, moreover, says 
that ** to save their own stakes, the Templars would some- 
times play hootie with the Turks." 

In the year 1185, Saladin defeated the Christians and 
gained possession of the Holy City, but more than a cen- 
tury elapsed before they were entirely routed, and a ter- 
mination was put to a war which, in the face of the 
greatest disadvantages, had been carried on with the most 
unremitting vigour nearly 200 years, ^ A celebrated writer 
remarks, " that men will wrangle for religion, write for 
it, fight for it, die for it, any thing but live for it," ^ and 
no examples, perhaps, could be quoted more in point, thau 
the vast privations endured, the dangers encountered, the 
lives willingly sacrificed during the crusades, and the 
generally bad character of those who thus strived for 
religion's sake. 

The Templars as a body did not exist long after the 
immediate occasion for them had ceased. In 1307, Philip 
le Bel, King of France — who was prompted, it is supposed, 
by a desire to enrich himself with their possessions — in- 
stituted most arbitrary and unexampled proceedings against 
them, in that country. They were accused of crimes against 
religion and morality of the blackest dye and most impro- 
bable character ; were throwm into prison and exposed to 
the severest torture, in order to extort from them evidence 

' See also Voltaire. " Histoire des Croisades." Passim. 
^ Fuller says it was a war " for continuance the longest, for money spent 
the costliest, for bloodshed the cruellest, for pretences the most pious, and 
for the true intent the most politick the world ever saw." p. 228. ut sup. 
^ Col ton's " Lacon." 



8 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

against their fellows. Some, unable to endure it, acknow- 
ledged all that was required of them ; others signed con- 
fessions written in latin, which they did not understand, i 
and afterwards, when restored to health, recanting in 
the first instance and denying in the second, were publicly 
burned alive as relapsed heretics. Amongst these was 
James de Molai, the grand Master, who in the extremity 
of his anguish confessed he had, as a Templar, denied 
Christ, and trampled on the cross, but ultimately died 
before a slow fire, a. d. 1314, abjuring this forced con- 
fession and proclaiming the innocence of the order. The 
institution was declared to be abolished by Pope Clement, 
A. D. 1312, and the principal of their vast possessions, 
which, it seems, Philip himself coveted, and which, with- 
out doubt, caused their downfall, were, ultimately, as we 
shall see, bestowed on the Knights Hospitallers of St. 
John.^ Similar steps were taken all over Europe, and the 
the fraternity was entirely broken up. In England, it is 
true, under Edward II. the proceedings were milder, but 
the result was the same.^ 

After the dissolution of the order we find that Edward 

1 Lyttleton's " History of England." Vol. i. p. 491. 

2 The Templars, at their dissolution, possessed 16,000 lordships (Dugdale) 
" as Sir John Cornwall, Lord Fanhop said merrily, that not he, but his stately 
house at Ampthill in Bedfordshire was guiltie of high treason, so certainly 
their wealth was the principal cause of their overthrow. We may believe 
King Philip would never have took away their lives if he might have took 
their lands without putting them to death : but the mischief was, he could 
not get the honey unless he burnt the bees." Fuller, ut. sup. B. v. p. 233. 

^ Ferrati, of Vicenza, a writer of the fourteenth century, says *' that there 
were 15,000 Knights distributed over Christendom at the time of the dissolution 
of the order,'' as quoted in Mills' " History," ut. sup. which see for an 
ample dissertation on the proceedings against them. On the same subject see 
also " Monumens Hlstoriques relatifs a la condemnation des Chevaliers du 
Temple ct r Abolition dc leur Ordre, by M. Raynouard ;'' and Wiikins' 
" Concilia.'' Vol. II. 



1 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 9 

II. bestowed the new Temple " et terram que vocatur 
Ficketts Croft juxta London', et omia alia tenta et reddit', 
cum pertin', que fuerunt Templariorum in civitate et 
suburbiis London'," upon Adamar de Valence, Earl of 
Pembroke.^ Two years afterwards, however, it appears, that 
the King, having made some other arrangement with this 
nobleman, granted the Temple to Thomas Earl of Lan- 
caster, and on his attainder it reverted to the Crown. In 
1324, by a council holden at Vienna, all the lands of the 
Templars, (" lest the same should be put to profane uses " ) 
were given to the Knights of St. John, who were at that 
time in especial estimation for the valour they had dis- 
played against the Turks at the Isle of Rhodes ; ^ among 
these was the Temple, London, which for some reason, 
not apparent, they conveyed to Hugh le Despencer, the 
King's favourite : and upon his death it once more devolved 
to the crown. 

Edward III. a. d. 1328, in consideration of an annual 
rent of £24. gave possession of the Temple and its appur- 
tenances for ten years to William de Langford, but in the 
following year, it appears that the prior and the brethren 
of the order of St. John were restored to '^ the Church 
and places sanctified and dedicated to God ; by reason 
whereof William Langford was abated £12. 4s. Id. of his 
said rent." ^ On the expiration of the said ten years, the 
prior having promised £100 towards an expedition into 
France, the rest of the manor, together with the church, 
church-yard and cloisters, was granted by the King to the 
brotherhood. The Knights shortly afterwards leased the 
Temple and its appurtenances, for a rent of £10. per annum 

' Malcolm's " Londinium JRedivivum." Vol. II. p. 287. 
2 Strype's Edition of Stow's " Survey of London," &c. B. iii. p. 271. 
3 Malcolm, nt sup. 



10 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

to a society of students of the common laws of England, 
who, finding their numbers increasing, formed themselves, 
in the reign of Richard II. into two societies, known as 
those of the inner Temple and of the middle Temple, ^ to 
whom equally the present church belongs. The relation thus 
far appears to rest chiefly on tradition, as the populace, led by 
Wat Tyler, who rose in insurrection in the reign of Richard 
II. (a. d. 1381.) destroyed all the records of the place. An 
ancient M.S. says, the rebels went to the Temple '* et 
jetteront les measons a le terre et avegheront tighles issint 
que ils fairont coverture en mal array et alleront en I'esglise, 
et pristeront touts les liveres et rolls de remembrances que 
furont ou lour huches deins le Temple de apprentices 
de la ley, et porteront en le haut chimene et les arderont." ^ 

The fact, however, that lawyers did reside there in the 
reign of Edward III. is confirmed in some lines by Chaucer, 
who appears himself to have been a Temple student. 

In the 3 2d of Henry VIII. the order of St. John was 
dissolved, and the Temple again became the property of 
the crown : the law students however — the new Templars, 
as Fuller quaintly calls them, still held it on lease, *' defend- 
ing one Christian from another as the old ones did Christians 
from Pagans," (p. 97. ut sup.) till the time of James I. 
who, in the sixth year of his reign, granted the whole to Sir 
Julius Csesar, Knight, the Benchers and others of the Temple 
and their assigns for ever, ''for the reception, lodging 
and education of the professors and students of the laws of 
this Realm," at a rent of £10. yearly from each Society.^ 

^ Britton's " Illustrations of the Public Buildings of London." Vol. I. 
p. 137. 

2 Herbert's " Antiquities of the Inns of Court and Chancery." p. 189. See 
also " Stow's Survey," Strype's Edition. B. iii. p. 271. 

3 Britton's " Public Buildings," ut sup. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 11 

Formerly the Church appears to have been the general 
resort of the students and others, as we see by *' A De- 
scription of the form and manner how and by what orders 
and customs the state of the Fellowship of the Middle 
Temple is maintained ; and what ways they have to attaine 
unto learning," (written in the time of King Henry VIII). 
In this we find the following ^^ Item. The learners have 
no place to walk in and talk and confer their learnings, 
but in the church ; which place all the terme-times hath in 
it no more quietnesse than the pervyse ofPauVs — by occa- 
sion of the confluence and concourse of such as are suters 
in the law." Again, Butler says in " Hudibras" (partiii. 
canto iii. line 760.) 

" Retain all sorts of witnesses 
That ply i' th' Temple under trees, 
Or walk the round, with knights of the posts, 
About the cross-legg'd knights their hosts." 

and Stow calls it '' the round walk." 

Round and polygo7iic buildings, respecting the origin 
of which there has been much disquisition, were erected 
in the earliest periods of civilization, when probably the 
form, a pleasing one, alone had influence. Pausanias 
writes that the Thracians builded their temples round, and 
open at the top.^ At Athens we have one of this form re- 
maining, known as the choragic monument of Lysicrates ; ^ 
and at Rome many, namely, all the temples dedicated to 
Vesta ; the Pantheon ; the Mausoleum of Cecilia Metella ; 
the temple of Minerva Medica ; the temple of Hope ; that of 

^ Britton's " Architectural Antiquities," Vol. I. p. 17. which see, for 
much interesting information on this subject. 

2 Supposed date about 330 years B. C, in the time of Demostlienes, 
Apelles, and Alexander the Great. The Treasury at Mycenae and the 
octagon tower, known as the Temple of the Winds, may also be noticed. 



12 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

Remus and Romulus ; the church of St. Agnes, and others. 
After the introduction of Christianity and the institution 
of baptism — which was at first by immersion — a building 
for this purpose, near, or attached to the church, became 
necessary, and these we find were constructed either cir- 
cular or polygonal, *' in order that the assistants might 
from all sides more easily view the cistern that served as a 
font ;" ^ and Helena, in whose reign many of these bap- 
tisteries were erected, when she built the church over the 
Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem, gave to it the circular form, 
perhaps either from the remembrance of these, or on the 
like principle, namely, that — the tomb (for possession of 
which so much blood, and so much money were afterwards 
expended) being placed in the centre— it was the form best 
adapted to enable a number of persons distinctly to view 
at the same time the object of their pilgrimage. 

That the Templars then, when they had occasion in 
their own country to erect churches for the purposes of 
their order, should adopt the form of this building, the 
protection of which from insult was one of their chief 
duties, appears quite natural ; and accordingly we find 
that in all their edifices the circular form prevailed. In 
England we have four round Churches remaining, viz. 
those of St. Sepulchre, at Cambridge, and at Northamp- 
ton, the Temple Church, London, and that at Little 
Maplestead, Essex, all of which have been ascribed by 
some authors, Dallaway amongst the number, to the 
Knights Templars. ^ There is every reason, however, to 
believe that this is not the fact ; but without going into 
a question, which would lead us somewhat astray, suffice 
it to state, that the church of St. Mary, London, the 

1 Hope's " History of Architecture," p. 115. 
2 " Discourses upon Architecture in England," p. 47. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 13 

subject of our notice, was completed about the year 1185, 
when it was dedicated to the service of the Virgin by 
Heraclius, the patriarch of Jerusalem. 

Heraclius visited England, it appears, in company with 
the grand master of the Templars, and the commander 
of the Hospitallers, with the view of inducing Henry H. 
to afford his personal aid to the cause of the cross, or, in 
the event of his refusal, to obtain the presence of one 
of his sons. Failing in both these objects, (for the parlia- 
ment held it was more wholesome for the king's soul that 
he should defend his own country against the barbarous 
French, than that he should provide for the safety of those 
in the East in his own person,) the patriarch's rage knew 
no bounds, and he lavished the most virulent abuse on the 
monarch. *' The kynge, however, kepte his pacience and 
sayd, ' I maye not wend out of my londe, for myn owne 
sonnes wyll aryse agayne me whan I were absent.' ' No 
wonder,' sayde the patryarke, ' for of the devyll they 
come, and to the devyll they shall go, and so departed 
from the kynge in great ire." ' ^ 

The foundation of the Temple Church was commemo- 
rated by the following inscription engraved within a half- 
circle in Saxon capitals, which, it is recorded by Stow, 

was copied by Mr. Holmes from that originally set up on 

« 
the building. 

+ ANNO • AB . INCARNA 

TIONE . DOMINI • M CL.X.X.X.V. 

DEDICATA — i — HEC • ECCLESIA • IN . HONO 

RE . BEATE • MARIE • A • DNO . ERACLIO . DEI • CRA 

SHE . RESVRECTIONIS . ECCLESIE • PATRI 

ARCHA • Mil . IDVS • FEBRVARII • Q • EA . ANNATIM. 

PETETIB . DE . IIVNTA . S • PENlTIETiA • LX . DIES • INDVLSIT • 

^ Fabian's "Chronicles," p. 280. edit. 1811. 



14 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 



By order of the Benchers of the two societies, a copy 
was made of this, in 1811, and put up in the inside of 
the church over the western entrance, where it is still to 
be seen. The indulgence mentioned in it, the Rev, Mr. 
Pegge states, in his " Sylloge of Inscriptions," is the 
earliest instance of the kind that he met with.^ 

Weever writes that ** some hold the Temple was built 
by Dunwallo Mulmutius, A.M. 4748, as a place of sanc- 
tuary," and he goes on to say, although it was '' newly 
founded of farre later times and dedicated to the honour 
of the blessed virgine," he himself believed it to be much 
more ancient than the generally received date.^ In regard 
to this point, however, no other information is to be 
obtained, and little attention can therefore be paid to it ; 
but we may safely infer that no part of the present build- 
ing is of earlier date than that recorded in the preceding 
inscription. 




' As quoted in Britton's "London," iit supra, Vol. L p. 138. 
2 " J^^unoral Moniimonts," p. 441. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 15 

The Temple Church, at this time, consists of two parts; 
namely, the circular portion, or nave, already referred to, 
and an oblong addition (the choir) probably of later date, 
which is the part appropriated to the church service ; the 
circular portion serving merely as a vestibule to it. A 
similar additional building belongs to all the English 
round churches, and has led to some discussion, Dalla- 
way^ asserts roundly that all these churches in their 
original design were merely circular, and that the dblong 
choirs, to which they are now but lobbies, are subsequent 
additions. To this, however, we are not disposed impli- 
citly to assent. The church of the Holy Sepulchre at 
Jerusalem, which, as we have said, was built by the Empress 
Helena at the commencement of the fourth century, and, 
as it appears, was rebuilt by Charlemagne in the ninth, 
presents the appearance of an oblong building, semicircular 
at the west end, and terminating at the eastern in a nearly 
semicircular apsis. It is covered by two large domes, or 
cupolas, and is divided in the interior into a circular 
building (the western end) , in the centre of which is placed 
the tomb of our Saviour, and a nearly square church 
communicating therefrom towards the East, and occupying 
the remainder of the building : within the area of the 
circular part, an aile is formed by a series of stone columns 
and piers indifferently, with semicircular arches which 
support the drum of the dome. The form, therefore, it 
may be seen, is precisely similar to that of the Temple 
Church, and of the other round churches, as they now 
stand : nor does there seem to be evidence to induce the sup- 
position that it was at any time different. It may be men- 
tioned too, that adjoining the eastern end of the building at 
Jerusalem there is a small crypt communicating therewith, 

^ " Discourses," rtt supra, p. 47. 



16 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

(on the site of which our Saviour's cross was discovered) ^ 
which is known as Helena's chapel, serving, almost, to 
identify the three divisions as coeval.^ There is so much 
obscurity, however, in the accounts of the older writers — 
in that of Bede, for example, it is described as a large 
round church encompassed by three walls and supported 
by twelve pillars,^ — that nothing positive can be advanced 
on the subject. If, however, the church of the sepulchre 
were originally of its present form, — and there does not 
appear to be any cause to doubt this, — it seems but reason- 
able that the military knights, when they erected their 
churches in England, professedly in imitation of that, 
should have raised not merely the circular vestibule but 
the oblong choir which we find attached. In the case of 
one of them, at all events, namely, the church of Little 
Maplestead, which, if not built by the Templars, certainly 
was after the same model, and with a like purpose, it was 
discovered, on strict examination at various points of the 
building, that all the foundations throughout are on one 
level ; that below the ground there is a set-off of six 
inches externally, which runs round the whole of the 
building ; that at the points where the circular portion 
of the church unites with the oblong, there is not the 

1 During the middle ages, as is well known, it was believed the relics of 
saints and martyrs were endowed with miraculous powers, and they were, in 
consequence, eagerly sought after by the pious of all degrees. As may be 
supposed, the Roman Hierarchy did not allow an appetite so advantageous 
to its coffers to languish for want of food, and none being more prized than 
the relics of the cross on which our Lord was crucified, we find, as Erasmus 
said, that if the fragments, received throughout ^,he world as such, had been 
collected together, there would have been suflicient to build a ship. 

2 To our friend, Dr. Holt Yates, for the loan of some excellent drawings 
made during a residence in Jerusalem, and from which the foregoing descrip- 
tion is taken, we offer acknowledgments. 

3 " Architectural Antiquities,'' ut supra, Vol. L 




: PLE CHUM.CH. 

View across th.eEastJ''nd . 



/,■//. /..//. lt,J?Us/ie.L b7j ii.rac.t 



^' 



i^ 

-••m* 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 17 

slightest indication of any difference in workmanship or 
materials ; and again, it was clearly ascertained that the 
whole of the chamferred plinths to the buttresses, each of 
them having been examined separately, are on the same 
level ; tending to prove, almost beyond a doubt, that the 
different parts of the building are of one date. ^ 

At the Temple Church, as we have said already, the two 
portions display a trifling difference in style, and were 
evidently built at different though not distant periods ; but 
whether at the first it may not have consisted of two parts, 
as at present, one of which was afterwards, perhaps acci- 
dentally, destroyed and renewed ; or at all events, whether 
it was not originally designed to include the two parts, al- 
though not completed until some years from each other, 
we are unable to determine. Stow says that the church 
was *^ again dedicated and belike also newly re-edified " in 
the year 1240,^ to which period the choir is generally as- 
cribed ; and one would almost suspect that had the church 
previously consisted merely of the circular building — had 
so large a portion of it as the choir forms then been added 
— some other word would have been used. 

The entrance to the Temple Church, which is at the west 
end, is by a beautiful semi-circular-arched doorway, deeply 
recessed, having columns with enriched capitals on each 
side, and several ornamented archivolts around, springing 
from the former. The accompanying wood-cut affords a 
representation of it. This doorway leads immediately into the 
circular portion of the building, and of this our engraving- 
displays the arrangement and architectural features. It pre- 
sents, as may be seen, a very interesting mixture of the 

» " The History and Antiquities of the Round Church at Little Maple- 
stead, Essex," by William Wallen, Architect, p. 152, an interesting volume. 
2 « Survey of the City of London, (fee." Strype's Edit. B. Ill, p. 271. 

I 



18 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 




WESTERN DOORWAY. 



Anglo-Norman circular with the early-pointed style — a 
specimen of that period in English architecture which has 
been termed the intermediate ; when the solid and substan- 
tial forms of the semi-circular arch, and comparatively short 
and massive column, were about to give place to the fairy- 
like elegance and grace of the slender shafts, the minutely 
divided supports, and the richly-diversified forms which 
distinguish the pointed style. At the time of its erection, 
namely, A.D. 1 185, and indeed even earlier, we may consi- 
der that the pointed style was in a great measure established 
in England upon systematic principles, as may be seen, 
without naming other instances, in the choir of Canterbury 
Cathedral, as well as in that other portion of it called 
Trinity Chapel and Becket's Crown ; which parts were 
chiefly erected between the years 1 175 and 1 1 84.^ We must 
suppose, therefore, either that a perfect knowledge of the 

' Britton's " Clironological History of Christian Architecture in England,' 
p. 118, and tlie same author's volume on Canterbury Cathedral. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 19 

new style had not reached the architect — although from the 
intimate connection which subsisted between the pro- 
fessors of the art as members of the fraternity of Free- 
Masons, (and by which alone we can account for the 
sudden and universal developement of certain portions of 
a style, to be noticed in tracing the history of Gothic 
Architecture,) new principles were usually transmitted 
quickly from one to the other — or that caprice induced 
the admixture. 

As may be observed in our engraving, an aile is formed 
within the area by six clusters of columns, each consisting 
of four insulated shafts banded together near the centre 
for support, and bearing pointed arches, the soffits of which 
are divided into several mouldings. Above these arches, 
and on the same face, ( thus making the upper diameter 
of the building withinside less than the lower by the whole 
width of the aile on each side,) is a triforium, or gallery 
passing round the whole circumference, and adorned by a 
series of interlaced arches ; while in the clere- story above 
occurs, over each archway, a semicircular-headed window. 
From the abacus of each of the clustered columns (which 
is peculiar in its plan) rises a single shaft on the face of 
the triforum and clere-story to the top of the building, 
and from this spring ribs which support a flat ceiling, 
apparently, however, not original. 

The groining over the aile, which is simple, is formed 
by cross-springers from the clustered columns to single 
columns attached to the external wall of the building, and 
has enriched bosses at the intersections. Upon the 
wall of the aile there is a continued arcade adorned 
by a billet-moulding, and short columns with enriched 
capitals ; and in the spandrels, as may be seen by the 
annexed engraving, occurs a series of sculptured heads 

12 



20 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 




PART OF ARCADE IN THE CIRCULAR AILE. 



which are of masterly design, and display astonishing 
variety of character. 

These heads were said to be moulded in a coarse sort of 
mortar; but in 1827, when the circular portion of the 
church, including this arcade, was generally restored,^ under 

* To record this restoration, the following inscription appears within the 
easternmost window of the aile, and above the same window on the 
outside of the church. 

HujuscE . iEois . Sacr^e 
Partem . Australem . Sibi . Propriam . 

ReSTITUI . CURAVIT . 
InTERIORIS . TeMPLI . HOSPITIUM . 
JOHANNE . GuRNEY . ArMIGERO . 

Thesaurario. 
mdcccxxvii. 



rSlfr.^'V 




TEMPLE CHURCH . 

View of rlie Wlt^/jkncfcom the Vestry Door. 



London. PuhUsherl bv C.TUx..Flce.t Street. Ju2n 1. JS.H7. 



t'1# 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 21 

the able direction of Sir Robert Smirke, they were found 
to be of Caen stone, as were the capitals of the columns, 
and some few of the latter were used again. The present 
heads, which are carved in Portland stone, are copies of 
the originals. x\bove this arcade are eight semicircular- 
headed windows ; four on each side of the west door. 

Originally there were two small apartments attached to 
the south side of this part of the church, and communi- 
cating with it by a doorway from the aile ; these, 
were removed in 1824. The triforium around the upper 
part of the circular area is approached by a small well- 
staircase— which also leads to the roof of the choir. 
Within a turret on the north side at the junction of the two 
portions; and communicating with this staircase is 
a small apartment, formed within a pier of the building, 
about four feet six inches long, and two feet six inches 
wide, which, it is supposed, was used as a penitential cell, 
or place for confinement. 

On the floor of the area of the circular nave are two sin- 
gular groups of sepulchral Effigies (each surrounded by a 
light railing) which have excited much discussion, and, al- 
though sadly mutilated, may be regarded as amongst the 
most interesting remnants of ancient English sculpture. 

The northern group consists of five recumbent figures 
of knights, armed cap-a-pie, cut in high relief out of 
solid blocks of stone — each independent of the others — 
which at the same time form the plinths on which they 
rest ; and the southern group, of four similar figures and 
a coffin-shaped stone en-dos-d^ane. The knights are 
represented in chain armour with surcoats, and bear shields 
of the Norman form, which however differ much in length : 
all, with one exception, repose on cushions, and the 
greater number have a lion, or other animal, at their feet. 



22 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

In attitude, which is mostly spirited, they differ. Six of 
them are cross-legged, a position supposed, for some time, 
peculiar to the effigies of actual crusaders, but known now 
to have been employed to represent not only persons who 
went to Palestine as soldiers or pilgrims, but those who 
had vowed to go, or even those who had merely contri- 
buted funds to carry on the holy war. This statement 
is made more certain by the fact, in addition to other cir- 
cumstances, that there are instances of effigies representing 
females on their tombs in this singular position.^ The custom 
appears to have been nearly confined to England, and 
Dr. Nash^ states that none of these cross-legged monu- 
ments are later than the reign of Edward II. or the 
beginning of Edward III. nor earlier than that of 
Stephen. Mr. Pennant mentions two modern examples 
on the tombs of persons who died in the seventeenth 
century, and are thus represented at the church of Mitton, 
in Yorkshire, but these appear to be quite exceptions to 
the general fact. 

The notion which at one time prevailed that cross-legged 
figures were confined to the representation of Knights 
Templars has been long since exploded. 

Relative to the singular arrangement of the statues upon 
the pavement of the church, it appears nearly certain that 
they were not always in the situations they now occupy ; 
but, probably, were separately disposed in various parts of 
the church, on altar- tombs, or pedestals ; and during some 
reparation, or from peculiar circumstances, were placed as 
they are now seen. The want of chronological order ap- 
parent in their arrangement, the crowded position, and the 
absence of any similar instances, assisted by the fact that 

' Mills' " History of the Crusades," Vol. II. p. 9. 
^ As quoted in " Facts relating to the Temple Church." by J. Jekyll, Esq. 

LofC. 



n 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 23 

on excavating the ground beneath the northernmost group 
during the repairs in 1811, no coffins or remains were 
discovered, are sufficient evidence in support of the asser- 
tion. 

To identify the various statues, with the exception of 
three or four, appears at this time to be impossible. We 
learn from Gough ^ that the first figure of the southernmost 
group, is representative of Geoffrey deMagnaville, Earl of 
Essex, who was killed in the year 1148, while besieging 
the castle at Burwell : and having been buried in the old 
Temple before mentioned, was afterwards removed to the 
present building. In this figure, the right arm is placed 
upon the breast, and the left supports a shield charged 
with rays on a diamond ground, now almost obliterated. 
The sword, as is the case with two of the other effigies, 
hangs on the right hand side.^ 

The next figure, which is represented as sheathing the 
sword, is of William Marshall, Le Mareschall, Earl of 
Pembroke, who died 1219 : the shield, slung on his left 
arm, was charged with a lion rampant, which formed 
part of his arms ; this however is now nearly illegible.^ 
His son William Marshall, second Earl of Pembroke, who 
died in April 1230, is commemorated, it is stated, by the 
fourth effigy, a larger figure^ and in a better state of pre- 

1 " Sepulchral Monuments of Great Britain." Vol. I. Part i. p. 23. 

2 In relation to the charge on the shield of this statue, Gough Cut sup.) 
observes in his introduction, (p. cv.) * the first instance of arms on 
a shield on monuments, given by Montfaucon, in France, is in 1109; the 
oldest I have met with in England, is on the shield of Geoffrey Magnaville 
Earl of Essex, in the Temple Church.' 

3 " Upon William the elder, his tomb, I some years since read in the upper 
part Comes Pemhrochice, and upon the side this verse ; 

. . . . Miles eram Martis, 
Mars multos vicerat armis." 

Camden's ''Britannia." Middlesex. 



^4 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

servation than the others. The sword is suspended on 
the right side of the figure. 

The third is much smaller than the others, and repre- 
sents a youthful knight^ bare-headed, with a cowl about his 
neck ; *' as if," says Mr. Pennant,^ *^ according to common 
superstition in early days, he had desired to be buried in the 
dress of a monk, least the evil spirit should take possession 
of his body." His arms are crossed devotionally upon his 
breast, and the shield, which is slung on the left arm, is 
charged with three water bougets, the insignia of the Ros 
family. Weever, ^ from a portion of a Latin inscription apper- 
taining to one of these cross-legged effigies which he dis- 
covered amongst the Cottonian M.S.S. and applied to this 
statue, supposes it to represent Robert Ros, a Templar who 
presented to the order the manor of Ribston, and died in the 
year 1245. Gough, however, assigns this figure, on the au- 
thority of Bishop Tanner, to the second Lord Ros, surnamed 
Fursan, as the person who actually presented Ribston to the 
Templars. He died 1227. 

The stone coffin en-dos-d'ane forms the fifth subject in 
this group, and may be regarded with interest. The ridges 
and angles of its cover present a kind of cross, the top of 
which Gough states, for it is now hardly discoverable, ter- 
minated in a trefoil. " The foot rests on a bull's head, or 
perhaps a ram's, referring to the Holy Lamb ; and from the 
middle of the shaft, issue two fleurets or leaves." This, he 
supposed, may be the monument of William Plantagenet, 
fifth son of Henry III. who, we know, was buried some- 
v^here in the church, a. d. 1256, but the size of it much 
militates against the assertion, 

^ " Some Account of London." 5th Edition, p. 222. 
2 " Funeral Monuments," as quoted in " Illustrations of Public Buildings 
of London," ut sup. Vol. \\. p. 14L 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 25 

Of the figures composing the second group, namely, that 
on the northern side of the area, little or nothing is known. 
One of them, it appears from Camden and Weever, is 
meant for Gilbert Marshall, the third Earl of Pembroke, 
who was killed by falling from his horse in a tournament 
at Hertford in the year 1 24 1 ; and one might be tempted 
from the general resemblance of the third, or centre figure, 
to that of the second Earl of that name (before particu- 
larised) more especially in the peculiar size, and from the 
circumstance of the sword hanging at the right side of it, 
to point to this as the one intended for him. Camden 
however savs that the statues of William, and his sons 
WiUiam and Gilbert, all marshals of England and Earls 
of Pembroke, were still to be seen in this Temple, cross- 
legged ; and as this figure is not so, we are unable to 
hold the position. The fifth figure, numbering from the 
southernmost, which is cross-legged and has an unusually 
plaintive and pleasing aspect, has been by some assigned 
to him. 

The first figure in this group may be noticed as having 
foliage or roses sculptured on either side of the cushion 
which supports the head ; and the fourth for the peculiarly 
spirited manner in which the individual is represented, as 
trampling on a dragon, and at the same time drawing his 
sword. 

Gough, mentions, as a circumstance communicated to 
him on good authority, that a Hertfordshire baronet made 
application to the society of Benchers, '' for some of these 
cross-legged knights," to adorn a parochial chapel newly 
erected by him ; but that they, discovering as much good 
sense as regard for the remnants of ancient times, refused 
compliance. At the present moment the absurdity of the 
application, (now apparent to all, but seemingly then refused 



26 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

without any expression of surprise,) induces involuntarily a 
smile ; and this anecdote is therefore interesting, as afford- 
ing one example, among many, of the vast change in pub- 
lic opinion relative to the works of our forefathers, which 
has taken place so happily, and so universally within a few 
years. The remnants of the past have proved, and will 
prove, stepping-stones for the future. While telling us 
by intelligible signs what things have been, they appeal to 
our pride, forbid us to recede, and eloquently point out the 
way for an approach to excellence. 

The oblong portion of the church, or Choir , which is one 
of the most pure and elegant examples extant of the early 
pointed style, is divided by clustered columns into three 
unequal ailes ; the side ailes being each about two-thirds 
the width of that in the centre. The clustered columns, 
which are four in number on each side, and do not consist 
of small independent shafts, as in the circular building, but 
form solid pillars, are extremely light and elegant, and are 
connected by pointed arches, the soffits of which 
are divided into numerous mouldings. The groining of 
the centre aile, which is of stone, is formed merely by 
cross-springers, consisting of simple mouldings, which rise 
from the caps of the columns, and have carved bosses at 
the intersections. Over the side ailes similar ribs are re- 
ceived on the caps of columns attached to the walls, but 
here they rise more pointedly, in order to make the ceiling 
to the three parts, the same height from the ground. 

In each of the five compartments, into which the side 
walls are thus divided, occurs a triple lancet-headed window 
occupying nearly the whole space ; so nearly indeed, as to 
form each side of the church into a continued series of open- 
ings and muUions, and to give to it an astonishingly light 
and graceful appearance. The mouldings around the heads of 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 27 

the triple windows are supported by small insulated columns, 
banded for strength near the center, and, as well as the 
columns themselves, are very beautiful in their details, as 
may be seen by our engraving of this portion of the building. 

At the eastern end are three windows precisely similar to 
those in the ailes, excepting that the one in the centre is 
considerably larger than any of the others, and has in the 
spandrels formed by the line of groining, two small quatre- 
foil panels ; the only instance of the occurrence of this 
ornament throughout the church. 

Like many others of our old sacred buildings, this part of 
the Temple Church is sadly disfigured ; not merely by the 
pewing, which, although an evil so far as regards the ap- 
pearance of our religious buildings, is yet a necessary one, 
but by the anomalous introduction of various fittings in the 
classic style ; such as the altar-piece, the pulpit, and the 
organ-gallery.^ The former, which is of oak, is a heavy com- 
position of Corinthian columns &c., but presents in the 
wreaths of flowers, by which it is adorned, several specimens 
of most exquisite carving, to be ascribed almost with cer- 
tainty to Grinling Gibbons. The pulpit and sounding- 
board, also of oak, are elaborately carved, but in point of 
execution may not be compared with the altar-piece. The 
organ-screen bears on it the date of its erection, 1682 ; about 
which time probably, (or shortly after, for the building was 
repaired in 1695,) many other inconsistencies, remains of 
which are still apparent on the outside of the church, were 
executed. The roof above the choir, which is of a very 
steep pitch, is somewhat singular in construction. 

Against the south wall of the choir at the east end, oc- 



' The Organ is remarkable for its excellence, and is one of the oldest in 
London. 



28 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

curs a recumbent figure of a bishop, (holding a crosier in his 
hand, and clad in the pontifical robes,) resting on an altar- 
tomb, about 18 inches from the ground, and surrounded by 
an iron railing. This figure, which is boldly, we may 
almost say beautifully sculptured, has given rise like 
those in the circular nave, to much discussion ; some 
supposing it to commemorate Heraclius, the patriarch of 
Jerusalem, who, as we have said, consecrated the church 
in the year 1185. 

On the 7 th of December, 1810, this tomb was opened, and 
within it was found an entire skeleton of a man wrapped in 
sheet lead, with several pieces of a crosier, or pastoral staff 
by his side.^ There were also found portions of the skele- 
ton of an infant ; a circumstance involved in much mystery. 
The dust in the coffin Mr. Jekyll relates,^ was carefully 
sifted, in the hope of discovering an episcopal ring, but 
without success. It appeared, however, that the tomb had 
been previously examined, and most probably rifled ; (per- 
haps by Wat Tyler's band,) for the leaden envelope, part 
of which had perished, had been cut down the centre by a 
blunt instrument of some sort. If this, then, were the tomb 
of Heraclius, who as we know, returned from England to 
Jerusalem, it is clear he must have been brought here a 
second time, and, as it would appear, expressly for the 
purpose of sepulture. The Temple church was accounted so 
holy, that the most distinguished people in the kingdom as- 

^ According to the ordinances of the Pope, a bishop was not to be con- 
sidered inaugurated until he had received from the Pope's agent the pall 
and crosier, for which a comparatively large sum of money was required. 
These were usually buried with their owner, either on superstitious grounds, 
or more probably as it would appear, in order that the new bishop might not 
fancy that the old crosier would suit his purpose as well as a new one, and 
so defraud the Pope of liis /m /-(//yearned dues. 

^ " Facts Relating to the Temple Church," ut supra. 




Dr,>.wn.hyR.W.}iinu. 



Uruiraved, I'uJ.Lr Ki'i/.i:. 



nrjKMFjLJii: cjuiuiiicini,, 

iTLtiirioT o{ die CirnaJaT pari. 

LonJ^n. /'uJjIisIuuI. by C. liJt, Fhuit Strtift July I l837 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 29 

pired to be buried there ; ^ and Mr. Jekyll thinks it not in the 
least unlikely that Heraclius was brought over : there is not 
however the slightest evidence of such a circumstance, nor 
does it seem even probable ; Heraclius on his return to the 
holy city having ** lived viciously, and died obscurely. "^ 
Malcolm states without question or comment,^ on the au- 
thority of Mr. Nichols, that this elegant monument is to the 
memory of Silvester de Everdon , who was Bishop of Car- 
lisle from 1246 to 1*255, when he was killed by a fall from 
a mettlesome horse ; and as we know that he was buried in 
this church, there can be but little doubt on the subject. 
In regard to the infant's skeleton found within the tomb, 
there havebeen severalsuppositions, but there is no certainty. 
If this be the tomb of Everdon, it does not appear out of 
character to suppose that the body of the infant, William 

' The Temple was often made a storehouse for treasure too. Stow says 
on the authority of Matthew Paris, " that in the year 1232, Hubert de 
Burgh, Earl of Kent, being prisoner in the Tower of London, the king was 
informed that he had much treasure laid up in this new Temple, under the 
custody of the Templars. Whereupon he sent for the Master of the Tem- 
ple, and examined him straightly ; who confessed that money being delivered 
unto him and his brethren to be kept, he knew not how much there was of 
it." And again, that in the year 1283, "Edward I. taking with him Robert 
Waleran and others, came to the Temple ; where calling for the keeper of 
the Treasure-house, as if he meant to see his mother's jewels that were laid 
up there to be safely kept, he entered into the house, breaking the coffers 
of certain persons that had likewise brought their money thither ; and he 
took away from thence to the value of £ 1000. Many parliaments and great 
councils have been there kept, as may appear by our histories." " Survey," 
ut sup. B. III. pp. 270, 271. 

' Fuller's " Historic," m« sup. Heraclius, or Eraclius was born at Auvergne 
in France, and was in early life made Archbishop of Caesarea. In 1181, 
(an old M. S. quoted by the author of L' Art de Verifier les Dates, says 
1180.) he was " for his handsomenesse " made Patriarch of Jerusalem, and 
caused great scandal soon after the appointment by his conduct. He died 
A.D. 1193. 

^ Londinium Redivivum, Vol. II. p. 294. 



30 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

Plantagenet, before mentioned, who was buried here about 
1256, may have been placed within it : as however there 
is no authority for such an assertion, it is advanced with 
the greatest diffidence. 

Against the north wall, at the east end, is a figure to 
the memory of Edmund Plowden the lawyer ; who died 
1584 : ^ it is recumbent on an altar tomb, with a composed 
alcove ; and at the west end of the church is a figure, kneel- 
ing before a desk beneath a canopy or alcove similar in out- 
line to the last, in commemoration of — Martin, sometime 
Recorder of London. This monument has no date, but 
presents the following inscription : — 

" Salve, Lector. 
Martinus jacet hic ; si nescis caetera, quaere 
Interea tumuli : sis memor ipse tui. 

Vale, Jurisconsulte. 
Accedit totum precibus quacunque recedit, 
Litibus eternum sic tibi tempus erit." 

On the south wall, among many tablets to the memory 
of benchers and others, is one to Anne Lattleton, who 
died 1623, daughter-in-law to Sir Edward Littleton; and, 
immediately against it, a second to commemorate Clement 
Coke, son of Sir Edmund Coke ; a coincidence which can 
hardly escape notice. A long epitaph on the former, as 
recorded by Strype,^ ends thus prettily : 



* Plowden the celebrated author of the " Reports," studied the elements 
of legal knowledge, in which he afterwards became so eminent a proficient, 
at the Middle Temple, and held there the office of treasurer during the 
rebuilding of the great Hall ; in one of the windows of which, his arms, with 
the date 1576, still remain. This gentleman was of an ancient family in 
Shropshire, and a most distinguished lawyer and author. Herbert's " An- 
tiquities," ut supra, p. 269. 

2 Strype's Edition of « Stow's Survey," &c. ut supra, B. IIL p. 272. 



1 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 31 

" Keep well this pawn, thou marble chest ; 
'Till it be called for, let it rest. 
For while this jewel here is set. 
The grave is but a cabinet." 

The celebrated Selden who died in the year 1654, was 
also interred here. He is reported to have been super- 
eminently conversant with the laws and literature of his 
country; but, says Pennant, ''towards the close of his 
life, he was so thoroughly convinced of the vanity of all 
human knowledge, as to say that the 11th, 12th, 13th, 
and 14th verses of the second chapter of the epistle to 
Titus, afforded him more solid consolation than all he had 
ever read." ^ 

The general dimensions of the church within the walls 
are as follows. Diameter of the circular area, 58 feet. 
Length of the choir 82 feet. Width 58 feet, and Height 
37 feet.2 

The appearance presented at this moment by the exterior 
on the south side of the church, — which until a few years 
back, was hidden by various buildings now cleared away, — 
is perhaps sufficiently indicated by our engraving. This 
aspect however, given to it in the late restoration, was not 
extended to the other fronts of the church, probably for 
lack of funds. The northern half of the circular building, 
to be observed from some of the adjoining houses, presents 
battlements around the upper portion, (although probably 
this was not the original form,) instead of the close para- 
pet and corbels introduced on the other side ; and the roof 
over the aile, which is there covered with tiles, is seen from 
below. At the east end there are three high gables, each 

' '' London,^' ut supra, p. 224. 
2 Britton's " Illustrations of the Public Buildings of London." Vol. I. p. 144. 



32 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

crowned by a small urn with a flame issuing from the neck 
of it, — a slight relic probably of the alterations and adorn- 
ments made at the end of the seventeenth century ; a period 
when an universal contempt for gothic architecture seems to 
have been displayed, and all were desirous to mould their 
ideas by the renmants of classic art which were then becom- 
ing generally known. This part of the building forms 
the subject of one of the illustrations. 

In concluding our account of this interesting edifice, we 
cannot avoid one remark in regard to the obvious altera- 
tions made in the character of the mouldings introduced on 
that side of the church which has been restored, more es- 
pecially of the choir. When no remnants of those portions 
of a building which are to be imitated exist, it only re- 
mains for the architect to study well the general character, 
and to design his details as much in accordance therewith as 
possible ; but when, as in this case, perfect examples of every 
moulding are to be seen, — more particularly if with the res- 
tored parts, some portions of the original are to be placed 
in juxta-position, — any departure therefrom must be usually 
not merely uncalled for, but deserving of censure. 

The present Master of the Temple is the Rev. C. Benson, 
A.M. ; well known to the literary and religious world as the 
author of '' The Bampton Lectures " for 1820 and 1822. 



THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 31 

" Keep well this pawn, thou marble chest ; 
'Till it be called for, let it rest. 
For while this jewel here is set, 
The grave is but a cabinet/' 

The celebrated Selden who died in the year 1654, was 
also interred here. He is reported to have been super- 
eminently conversant with the laws and literature of his 
country; but, says Pennant, '* towards the close of his 
life, he was so thoroughly convinced of the vanity of all 
human knowledge, as to say that the 11th, 12th, 13th, 
and 14th verses of the second chapter of the epistle to 
Titus, afforded him more solid consolation than all he had 
ever read." ^ 

The general dimensions of the church within the walls 
are as follows. Diameter of the circular area, 58 feet. 
Length of the choir 82 feet. Width 58 feet, and Height 
37 feet.2 

The appearance presented at this moment by the exterior 
on the south side of the church, — which until a few years 
back, was hidden by various buildings now cleared away, — 
is perhaps sufficiently indicated by our engraving. This 
aspect however, given to it in the late restoration, was not 
extended to the other fronts of the church, probably for 
lack of funds. The northern half of the circular building, 
to be observed from some of the adjoining houses, presents 
battlements around the upper portion, (although probably 
this was not the original form,) instead of the close para- 
pet and corbels introduced on the other side ; and the roof 
over the aile, which is there covered with tiles, is seen from 
below. At the east end there are three high gables, each 



^ " London," ut supra, p. 224. 
Britton's " Illustrations of the Public Buildings of London." Vol. L p. 141. 



32 THE TEMPLE CHURCH. 

crowned by a small urn with a flame issuing from the neck 
of it, — a slight relic probably of the alterations and adorn- 
ments made at the end of the seventeenth century ; a period 
when an universal contempt for gothic architecture seems to 
have been displayed, and all were desirous to moul^ their 
ideas by the remnants of classic art which were then becom- 
ing generally known. This part of the building forms 
the subject of one of the illustrations. 

In concluding our account of this interesting edifice, we 
cannot avoid one remark in regard to the obvious altera- 
tions made in the character of the mouldings introduced on 
that side of the church which has been restored, more es- 
pecially of the choir.' When no remnants of those portions 
of a building which are to be imitated exist, it only re- 
mains for the architect to study well the general character, 
and to design his details as much in accordance therewith as 
possible: but when, as in this case, perfect examples of every 
moulding are to be seen, — more particularly if with the res- 
tored parts, some portions of the original are to placed 
in juxta-position, — any departure therefrom must be usually 
not merely uncalled for, but deserving of censure. 

The present Master of the Temple is the Rev. C. Benson, 
A.M. ; well known to the literary and religious world as the 
author of '' The Hulsean Lectures " for 1820 and 1822. 



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